Bottle Cap Safety

Bottle caps, both screw tops and crown caps such as those found on beer bottles, can injure you if you don't open them properly. Always open bottles using the proper method.

Types

• Most plastic soda bottles have screw-top caps. Some glass bottles have toothed metal caps called crown caps.

  Medications and household chemicals such as bleach and pesticides may come with child-proof caps.

Warnings

• Attempting to remove crown caps with your teeth can cause broken teeth, and also facial injuries from breaking glass if the bottle should shatter.

  Screw-top bottle caps occasionally display a phenomenon called missiling. This means that gases inside the bottle build up and fire the cap upward with a lot of force. People have sustained injuries from missiling bottle caps, including injuries to their eyes.

  Child-safety caps are often left unsecured by adults who don't want the extra trouble of opening them in the future. As a result, small children are often avoidably harmed by eating or drinking toxic substances.

Prevention/Solutions

• Remove crown caps safely with a bottle opener.

  When opening plastic soda bottles, cover the top with a cloth and do not lean over the bottle.

  Always secure child-proof caps after use, and place toxic chemicals and medicines out of the reach of children.